1. In the space below, describe the stasis at the beginning of Trifles. In other words, “Where are we?” “When is it (time, day, and year)?” “Who are the people involved?” “What is the dramatic situation in which the characters find themselves as the play unfolds?”
The beginning of the play opens as if it is just a simple story about a group of men solving a crime, with female bystanders. They are in a time and place with little to no technology, considering John Wright would have been needed to be convinced just to own a land line, which is basically obsolete today. The characters are typical of a crime scene, witnesses, attorneys, friends, and a sheriff. The women seemed unimportant to the plot until they started to notice and understand the things the men normally wouldn't: the broken preserve jars and the dirty towel.
2. What is the intrusion that causes the stasis to be broken and the dramatic action to develop, often at an increasingly rapid pace, to the end of the play?
The stasis is broken when the men begin to laugh at the discoveries and analysis of the women. They brush it off like it's nothing, but the women look deeper than the surface. The women notice small details, like nervous stitching or broken hinges on the bird cage. They are able to take their own experiences in things like nervously quilting to understand what Mrs. Wright was going through at home, rather than just look for reasons to keep her in jail. They were looking to sympathize with her rather than condemn her.
3. Why do the events of the play take place at this particular time and place? In other words, what is the unique factor which is out of the ordinary that causes a turn of events to take place?
There are many aspects of the time and place that contribute to the story line. If the story had taken place in a time with modern technology, they could basically just solve the crime using science and forensics rather than instincts. Also, they lived in a small farm town. This detail is important, because, in most towns like that, everyone knows everyone's business. In this situation, no one really knew much about the Wrights, which is strange for a small town like that. Their private location and lack of connection with the outside through telephone made the home seem eerie.
4. State the dramatic question or questions that must be answered by the end of the play? (Ordinarily, the dramatic question shares a close connection with the intrusion.)
What can the women infer from all of the small details they found? What did Mr. Wright contribute to Mrs. Wright's behaviors and leftover evidence at home? Why did the men not value the women's discoveries?
5. Use Ms. Hale to answer the questions concerning character. Ball says, a character is revealed by what he/she does, that is the dramatic actions that are taken. Examine what the character wants (NOTE: In Trifles the wants of Ms. Hale change as the play progresses). The wants of a character often encounter obstacles that get in the way of achieving those wants. Ball says there are 4 kinds of obstacles that frustrate the wants of a character. They are: a. Me against myself, b. Me against another individual, c. Me against society (that is law, social norms, etc.) and, d. Me against fate, the universe, natural forces, God or the gods. In answering these questions be sure to point to the particular obstacles that demonstrate these obstacles for Ms. Hale.
Mrs. Hale wants to understand Mrs. Wright in order for justice to be served. In this she is using her instincts, and her morals. In a way, she is at war with herself because she wants to do what is right by sharing her discoveries to support Mrs. Wright, but has to bite her tongue in order to avoid ridicule by the men. She also keeps her mouth shut, because in this time, a woman's actions are considered a reflection on their husbands, almost like an ownership. If she were to share her thoughts, she could potentially embarrass her husband and give him a bad reputation throughout their town. It can be inferred that they are in a Christian town, considering it is a countryside in the early 1900's. In this time, a good Christian wife was expected to be submissive and obey their men in order to maintain reputation. With that being said, her instincts and morals may have been opposed by their interpretation of the bible at the time. All of those details show that she is a smart and instinctive woman who does not quite have the chance to show it because of her "superiors" and social expectations.
6. The most important information in most plays takes place during theatrical moments. Identify the most theatrical moments in Trifles.
The most theatrical moments take place when the women start to piece together different very small details. Although those parts are important to the unraveling of the mystery, the message of the play seems to come from the interactions between the men and women. The women accept the ridicule from the men, and keep their rather important discoveries to themselves, because solving this mystery is considered to be the men's job. The very end shows it all. The women hid the evidence in their pockets and kept their mouths shut while the men poked fun at them for noticing the stitching in the quilt, which ultimately showed how Mrs. Wright felt being at home.
7. Provide at least three examples of images in Trifles. How does the title of the play help us understand the images in the play? (Remember Ball says that, “An image is the use of something we know that tells us something we don’t know.” He goes on to say that images invoke and expand, rather than define and limit.”)
A trifle, by definition, is something of very little value or importance. Mr. Hale says, "Well, women are used to worrying over trifles", meaning that thhe women's contributions were of little to no importance to the case. The image of the messy kitchen shows discourse. To the men, this image means the wife is neglectful. To the women, it means the wife is going through something or is struggling. This belief that Mrs. Wright may have been struggling brings it back to the image of her being emotionless in the rocking chair, almost like her struggle at home was finally over and she was at peace until the law came into play. The final image, that truly brings everything together, is the bird with the snapped neck. Birds are small and delicate, so the violent death is an obvious sign of struggle at home between man and wife. The delicate bird seemed to symbolize Mrs. Wright, having the things she loved taken from her, killing her joy over time.
8. Ordinarily, there are many themes in most plays. List the themes in Trifles.
First, the theme of feminism is shown throughout the whole play. The women continually make crucial discoveries that are seen as "trifles" and they are not valued. This reveals the oppression of women and their true potential that is being suppressed. Another theme is that there are many sides to every story. Only Hale's testimony cannot bring justice, they must learn the back story from Mrs. Wright's side and also value the opinion of all in order to find an ultimate conclusion. Lastly, the theme of the importance of community plays a large role. This murder would probably not have happened if Mrs. Wright was visited and spoken to. Staying connected and informed helps people to reveal any problems they have rather than bottling them up, especially if it has been noticed that said person has changed significantly over time. Many saw the home as gloomy, but did not care enough to find the root and help out.
9. Most American plays have something to do with family and/or family relationships. What does family have to do with Trifles? Is family redefined in Trifles?
The role of family plays a very subtle role in this play. Family during this time is very important. A family was the American Dream, and the Wrights did not have that. This small detail set the Wrights apart from the rest of the community. Two possibilities caused this; either Mrs. Wright was infertile, or Mr. Wright was not loving toward his wife enough for them to even attempt to conceive. Many clues show that Mrs. Wright was unhappy, and this small detail could potentially have been the root of every problem in the home.
1. In the space below, describe the stasis at the beginning of Trifles. In other words, “Where are we?” “When is it (time, day, and year)?” “Who are the people involved?” “What is the dramatic situation in which the characters find themselves as the play unfolds?”
The beginning of the play opens as if it is just a simple story about a group of men solving a crime, with female bystanders. They are in a time and place with little to no technology, considering John Wright would have been needed to be convinced just to own a land line, which is basically obsolete today. The characters are typical of a crime scene, witnesses, attorneys, friends, and a sheriff. The women seemed unimportant to the plot until they started to notice and understand the things the men normally wouldn't: the broken preserve jars and the dirty towel.
2. What is the intrusion that causes the stasis to be broken and the dramatic action to develop, often at an increasingly rapid pace, to the end of the play?
The stasis is broken when the men begin to laugh at the discoveries and analysis of the women. They brush it off like it's nothing, but the women look deeper than the surface. The women notice small details, like nervous stitching or broken hinges on the bird cage. They are able to take their own experiences in things like nervously quilting to understand what Mrs. Wright was going through at home, rather than just look for reasons to keep her in jail. They were looking to sympathize with her rather than condemn her.
3. Why do the events of the play take place at this particular time and place? In other words, what is the unique factor which is out of the ordinary that causes a turn of events to take place?
There are many aspects of the time and place that contribute to the story line. If the story had taken place in a time with modern technology, they could basically just solve the crime using science and forensics rather than instincts. Also, they lived in a small farm town. This detail is important, because, in most towns like that, everyone knows everyone's business. In this situation, no one really knew much about the Wrights, which is strange for a small town like that. Their private location and lack of connection with the outside through telephone made the home seem eerie.
4. State the dramatic question or questions that must be answered by the end of the play? (Ordinarily, the dramatic question shares a close connection with the intrusion.)
What can the women infer from all of the small details they found? What did Mr. Wright contribute to Mrs. Wright's behaviors and leftover evidence at home? Why did the men not value the women's discoveries?
5. Use Ms. Hale to answer the questions concerning character. Ball says, a character is revealed by what he/she does, that is the dramatic actions that are taken. Examine what the character wants (NOTE: In Trifles the wants of Ms. Hale change as the play progresses). The wants of a character often encounter obstacles that get in the way of achieving those wants. Ball says there are 4 kinds of obstacles that frustrate the wants of a character. They are: a. Me against myself, b. Me against another individual, c. Me against society (that is law, social norms, etc.) and, d. Me against fate, the universe, natural forces, God or the gods. In answering these questions be sure to point to the particular obstacles that demonstrate these obstacles for Ms. Hale.
Mrs. Hale wants to understand Mrs. Wright in order for justice to be served. In this she is using her instincts, and her morals. In a way, she is at war with herself because she wants to do what is right by sharing her discoveries to support Mrs. Wright, but has to bite her tongue in order to avoid ridicule by the men. She also keeps her mouth shut, because in this time, a woman's actions are considered a reflection on their husbands, almost like an ownership. If she were to share her thoughts, she could potentially embarrass her husband and give him a bad reputation throughout their town. It can be inferred that they are in a Christian town, considering it is a countryside in the early 1900's. In this time, a good Christian wife was expected to be submissive and obey their men in order to maintain reputation. With that being said, her instincts and morals may have been opposed by their interpretation of the bible at the time. All of those details show that she is a smart and instinctive woman who does not quite have the chance to show it because of her "superiors" and social expectations.
6. The most important information in most plays takes place during theatrical moments. Identify the most theatrical moments in Trifles.
The most theatrical moments take place when the women start to piece together different very small details. Although those parts are important to the unraveling of the mystery, the message of the play seems to come from the interactions between the men and women. The women accept the ridicule from the men, and keep their rather important discoveries to themselves, because solving this mystery is considered to be the men's job. The very end shows it all. The women hid the evidence in their pockets and kept their mouths shut while the men poked fun at them for noticing the stitching in the quilt, which ultimately showed how Mrs. Wright felt being at home.
7. Provide at least three examples of images in Trifles. How does the title of the play help us understand the images in the play? (Remember Ball says that, “An image is the use of something we know that tells us something we don’t know.” He goes on to say that images invoke and expand, rather than define and limit.”)
A trifle, by definition, is something of very little value or importance. Mr. Hale says, "Well, women are used to worrying over trifles", meaning that thhe women's contributions were of little to no importance to the case. The image of the messy kitchen shows discourse. To the men, this image means the wife is neglectful. To the women, it means the wife is going through something or is struggling. This belief that Mrs. Wright may have been struggling brings it back to the image of her being emotionless in the rocking chair, almost like her struggle at home was finally over and she was at peace until the law came into play. The final image, that truly brings everything together, is the bird with the snapped neck. Birds are small and delicate, so the violent death is an obvious sign of struggle at home between man and wife. The delicate bird seemed to symbolize Mrs. Wright, having the things she loved taken from her, killing her joy over time.
8. Ordinarily, there are many themes in most plays. List the themes in Trifles.
First, the theme of feminism is shown throughout the whole play. The women continually make crucial discoveries that are seen as "trifles" and they are not valued. This reveals the oppression of women and their true potential that is being suppressed. Another theme is that there are many sides to every story. Only Hale's testimony cannot bring justice, they must learn the back story from Mrs. Wright's side and also value the opinion of all in order to find an ultimate conclusion. Lastly, the theme of the importance of community plays a large role. This murder would probably not have happened if Mrs. Wright was visited and spoken to. Staying connected and informed helps people to reveal any problems they have rather than bottling them up, especially if it has been noticed that said person has changed significantly over time. Many saw the home as gloomy, but did not care enough to find the root and help out.
9. Most American plays have something to do with family and/or family relationships. What does family have to do with Trifles? Is family redefined in Trifles?
The role of family plays a very subtle role in this play. Family during this time is very important. A family was the American Dream, and the Wrights did not have that. This small detail set the Wrights apart from the rest of the community. Two possibilities caused this; either Mrs. Wright was infertile, or Mr. Wright was not loving toward his wife enough for them to even attempt to conceive. Many clues show that Mrs. Wright was unhappy, and this small detail could potentially have been the root of every problem in the home.